Mindconnection Brainpower Informational eNewsletter 2004-08-24

Conquering Aggressiveness

Dr. Jay Prince developed several behavioral improvement courses for Mindconnection. These use the same methods you would encounter if you were to visit a licensed therapist.

The idea behind these is to allow you to do the same exploration, discovery, and healing that you would achieve with three or four office visits--but without the $200 per session therapist's fee.

Everyone has issues. Now, you can get professional help in the privacy of your own home. Be a better you.

These courses are available now. The aggressiveness one is just an example. Click here to see the whole set.

2. Brainpower tip

For this tip, we will be conducting a simple test. You'll read about it in a moment. See if you can pass the test. Now, let's begin with principles.

These two principles will help you think, rather than be brainwashed:

There is no such thing as a free lunch. Everything has a cost.
Always look for cause and effect. It's often not as advertised.

Brainwashing is a clear and present danger, and it's one we must guard against. Today, we are being bombarded with political rhetoric that long ago crossed the line of ludicrous. The cause and effect test helps you cut through the B.S. rather quickly.

Let's take one of my favorite issues: "gun control." What does this mean? Ask the victims in the U.K. (violent crime up 400%), Australia, or Chicago--places where the right to defend yourself or your family is not recognized by the government.

Now, let's look at cause and effect:

Cause: Disarming a potential victim.
Effect: Criminals find it easier to violate the victim.
Outcome: This is pretty obvious.

This particular chain of cause and effect follows a universal principle. If you believe that disarming innocent citizens will reduce crime, then here's a simple test you can perform to show a "gun nut" why you believe the way you do. This test may cause you to question your beliefs, so be prepared.

Walk up to your neighbor's miniature poodle. Slap the dog upside the head, as hard as you can. Note the reaction. Does the dog still breathe? Note this, also.
Walk up to your neighbor's Rottweiller. Slap the dog upside the head, as hard as you can. If you live through it, note the reaction.
To confirm the experiment is producing valid results, repeat step two as often as you can with various breeds of dog. Look for boxers, pit bulls, Great Danes, Dalmatians, and Irish wolfhounds. Do you notice a pattern emerging?

Now, you are probably saying, "That's ridiculous. I'd be risking my life to slap a powerful animal like that in the head." Exactly. And now you know why an armed populace is a safe populace and why Florida has seen violent crime drop by 90% since they passed the right to carry law.

In this case, we simply applied the "logic" of "gun control" to similar situations. That is a good way to test for cause and effect. I picked "gun control" because the debate on that "issue" ended centuries ago. It's a great example of how someone can take an obvious falsehood and actually get people to believe it.

You can pick other issues to which you can use the test of logic to see what the truth is.

3. Time Tip

4. Finance tip

The sad truth behind mortgage prepayments.

If you think you can reduce interest payments by prepaying half your mortgage early each month, you are probably wrong. Most lenders do not allow this. All they do is hold that prepayment and apply it when your payment is due.

How can you save money on your mortgage?

Prepay the principal. You must specifically designate the payment for this purpose. Make sure your lender allows you to do this. The effect of this is to shorten the term of your mortgage. It does not reduce your interest rate. It only reduces the term over which you pay. It can reduce your total interest by reducing the term. Check with your lender.
Prepay at the end of the year. The only advantage here is you can deduct the interest in that year. For example, make your January payment in December, and claim the interest for the current year. But, this can be costly if you trigger the AMT--which means you lose nearly all of your deductions. You'll have to work the numbers ahead of time, and you will also need to ensure your lender allows this.

If you are really concerned about your finances, write to--or call--your Congressman and Senators and make it clear to them that the American People want to abolish the IRS. I recently met with the Speaker of the House and told him the IRS is a terrorist organization and Congress has no greater duty than to put an end to the reign of terror that American citizens are enduring from these whackos.

The IRS does not need "just cause" to take away all of your savings and future income. You have little recourse if some idiot there decides to make you a target. If you are familiar with Star Trek, you now know where the idea for the Borg came from.

5. Security tip

6. Health tip/Fitness tips

You do not get lean by running on a treadmill or doing low intensity aerobics. At right, you will see a recent photo of me. I'm in my mid-40s, and I have a natural disposition to put on body fat. As you can see, I'm not fat!

I don't run on a treadmill. Doing so consumes about 50 calories an hour, while there are 3500 calories in a pound of fat. It also raises your cortisol while lowering your testosterone, so you could actually be fatter from it!

There are two keys to a lean, strong body: proper nutrition and proper exercise.

And there are two keys to proper exercise: intensity and a structured program. For the same reason medicine says "Take two pills 3x/day w/meals," exercise must be structured. It may include treadmill work, but not the kind you usually see.

For free fitness tips, check out www.supplecity.com

7. Thought for the Day

Are you holding on to old ideas? We often do this, and usually we do it out of fear. We may be afraid to leave our comfort zone, afraid to admit we were wrong, afraid to try something new, or afraid to fail.

Now, imagine a trapeze artist who is afraid to let go of the old trapeze.

This is why you must let go of old notions, attitudes, and beliefs that no longer serve you. How can you identify these? Well, one way is to listen to yourself when challenged. If you are coming up with all kinds of rationalizations and logical leaps rather than a clear, logical, and fact-based argument, that's a pretty good sign you need to let go.

Trust in yourself. You are probably far better of a person than circumstances and other people have led you to believe. Don't let fear cause you to cling to the old trapeze until your grip tires and you fall anyhow. Look ahead and make the right moves.

Authorship

Except where noted, this e-newsletter is entirely the work of Mark Lamendola. Anything presented as fact can be independently verified. Often, sources are given; but where not given, they are readily available to anyone who makes the effort.

Mark provides information from either research or his own areas of established expertise. Sometimes, what appears to be a personal opinion is the only possibility when applying sound logic--reason it out before judging! (That said, some personal opinions do appear on occasion).

The purpose of this publication is to inform and empower its readers (and save you money!).

Personal note from Mark: I value each and every one of you, and I hope that shows in the diligent effort I put into writing this e-newsletter. Thank you for being a faithful reader.

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Mindconnection eNL, 2004-08-24